Monday, August 7, 2017

At the end of
Season Two of ITV’s Grantchester(2014-2017) I predicted this franchise on the cusp of becoming everyone’s
favorite ‘replacement’ for Downton Abbey
(2010-2015); at the time, planning its golden retreat into retirement. Grantchesterthen, seemed poised for
greatness – also longevity; a smartly written and stylish whodunit series, set
in the post-Edwardian/post-WWII decline and restructuring of England’s caste system,
with cohorts James Norton (the sinfully seductive vicar of a small Anglican Parish
near Cambridge) and former pop star, Robson Green (as the oft’ – if not always
– more level-headed Det. Inspector Geordie Keating), endeavoring to partner up
– and, intermittently butt heads’ – while investigating some ingenious and
involving crimes; all of it based on author, James Runcie’s highly popular
collection of short stories. Grantchesterought to be in its fourth
season by now, except chronic delays continue to plague its smooth sail into
immortality. Not exactly sure where the hiccups are, but rumor has it Norton’s
busy schedule (there doesn’t seem to be a Brit-born series from the last 2
years in which his iconic, thick-lipped and chiseled chin visage hasn’t cropped
up or played a pivotal part), and mercury-rising star power have left more than
a few sweaty palms wringing with speculation from fans and producers alike, he
might not want to strap on the clergyman’s collar anymore.

And thus, we
come to Season Three or rather, the
end of it – inconclusive, incorrigibly silly and downright frustrating at
times. Grantchester began as a sort
of fortuitous ‘Hardy Boys-esque’ romp
through this idyllic English countryside; the bromantic chemistry between Green
and Norton very refreshing and genuine. For here is a story about two guys who
do not really see the world as it is or, in fact, as the other does; the vicar,
through his cockeyed rubric of a fractured and chronically gin-soaked religious
calling (God is love, booze is great, and I will save thee from the bottle!),
the cop, through a more jaundiced clarity, built up over a tenured career in
law enforcement. Oh, bullocks! The teleplays, mostly co-written by the
show’s creator, Daisy Coulam and Runcie, with moderate assists from John
Jackson, Joshua St. Johnston, Oliver Frampton and Jess Williams, drew us into
this close-knit community by introducing some stellar supporting characters;
Morven Christie’s forthright love interest, Amanda Hopkins (sidelined from
pursuing the collar in a forced marriage to Guy, played by Tom Austen), Tessa
Peake-Jones’ austere yet lovable housekeeper, Mrs. Maguire; Al Weaver’s
introverted and closeted homosexual minister, Leonard Finch; Kacey Ainsworth,
as Geordie’s ever-devoted wife, Cathy, and Lorne MacFadyen’s enterprising and
not altogether trustworthy detective in training, Phil Wilkinson. In Season One we were also introduced to Sidney’s
sister, the fairly effervescent, Jennifer (played by the utterly charming Fiona
Button) - a character brought into focus by Button’s winsome good humor and
involved in a trio of mysteries, then tragically never revisited again; also, Pheline
Roggan, as Sidney’s deliciously determined German gal pal, Hildegard Staunton
(whom Sid’ spurned to renew his lusty pursuit of Amanda). Auf wiedersehen,
dawling!

Grantchester Season Three is not
altogether successful at either maintaining or even regaining the momentum of
its two preceding years chiefly because it veers from that case-solving
chemistry into a sort of sloppy soap-opera; splashing about in the deep end of
melodrama; the remaining characters all getting entirely too wrapped up in the
particulars of their very messy private lives.
In Season Three, our Sidney
drinks less and gets depressed more; a sad state of affairs for a fellow with
all that pent up sex appeal, but not even the good sense God gave a lemon. The
focus of the series has moved from the cloak and dagger espionage and murder
plots. Crimes still do occur. Only now they seem cruelly inconsequential to our
appreciation of the various interwoven narrative bloodlines; mere appendages to
offset the increasingly tangled and very complex underlay of personal matters
and ‘situations’ arising between friends and lovers; opening old wounds and
tearing a few new ones along the way. Does all this make for better
storytelling? Hardly…or perhaps, more kindly, only occasionally. Still, there
seems to be a distinct disconnect between the crime-solving and the personal
warring among the regular cast of characters; introducing a separation of
church and faith/crisis of conscience, an extramarital affair, and, ultimately,
putting a decided period to what was always a very troubled, though
intriguingly passionate flagrante delicto between good friends.

Season Three’s opener portends of an ominously dour exploration
into the darker side of all of these beloved characters. This begins almost
immediately when Sidney receives a dead crow and a series of spooky and
threatening phone calls, culminating with the discovery of a body lying
face-down in his church. As leading by example has never been Sidney’s forte,
he quickly hits the most available bottle of whiskey for a little solace. Now, Geordie
identifies the corpse as that of respected Dr. Atwell (Gregory Floy) who worked
at the local asylum. It seems Sidney conducted the funeral services for a
matron from the hospital, similarly and suspiciously died only three months earlier.
This might have worked up to a very compelling Hitchockian thriller; the mood
already set for a creepily good time. Alas, inexplicably, the plot detours to Amanda's
woes over her estranged husband, Guy, who would like to see his daughter,
Grace. My biggest peeve with Season
Three is, in fact, the inexplicable way this character has morphed from the
wounded party caught in a cruel and loveless marriage, now re-branded the
‘scarlet woman’, written off by her father, Sir Edward Kendall (Pip Torrens),
and increasingly, playing to type. No kidding, in just seven episodes Morven
Christie’s doe-eyed new mother goes from being a moderate thorn in Sidney’s
side (he has to deal with ‘the situation’ of toting around town with a married
woman and child) to a spurned, needy, sullen and demanding royal pain in the
ass. Sidney’s new boss, Archdeacon Gabriel Atubo (Gary Beadle) is
understandably, not at all pleased with this arrangement. Even so, Sidney continues to use No. 25, the
modest flat near the vicarage, as his No. 1 booty-call; despite Mrs. Maguire’s
snide inferences the pair are committing sin in the eyes of the Lord.

Despite her
misgivings, Mrs. Maguire is delighted to aid in the feeding and care of little
Grace. Meanwhile, things begin to sizzle at the police station as Geordie is
drawn into an illicit affair with his secretary, Margaret (Seline Hizli). Like
Hildegard before her, Margaret ought to have been Sidney’s gal pal after Amanda
walked down the aisle with Guy. It would have made perfect sense; Margaret
becoming the fashionable and street-savvy go-between Sidney and Geordie. But
no. Sidney could not rid himself of Amanda’s memory. And so, Margaret has since
become very flirtatiously with Geordie. Rising body count, nurse Ivy Franklin
(Sian Webber), more dead crows, a chance encounter with the new and very
robotic matron of the asylum, Veronica (Susannah Harker) and, some heavy
breathing at the vicarage…no – on the telephone and, well, we are decidedly
running out of time to solve the crime of the dead doctor inside the church.
Remember, this was to be the focus of Episode
1.

But no. We
bounce around a little more, to Leonard’s latest (or rather, continuing)
quandary: how best to keep his transparent homosexuality closeted. At the
behest of the Archdeacon, it seems the only ‘cure’ is a wife; Leonard, latching
onto Hilary Franklin (Emily Beavan), a woman devoted to the care of her dying
father. Suspecting Amanda to be in grave danger, Sidney rushes to intercept the
mysterious killer and is nearly drowned for his efforts by caretaker, Patrick Harland
(Nigel Cooke) who is out for revenge ever since the death of his only daughter,
Bonnie, in fact, committed to the asylum’s care by him before accidentally
being killed by the staffers – including Veronica - under the guise of
administering ‘therapy’. Veronica is arrested for her complicity in the crime
and Harland is taken to Bonnie’s unmarked grave; the police quickly realizing
the overgrown gardens behind the hospital are actually a mass burial ground for
all of the asylum’s casualties. Guy re-enters the picture, hoping to become the
ideal father to Grace. Sidney, who has thus far deluded himself into believing
he can play the part himself, is actually driven to take up cigarettes again. Amanda
is steadfast in her resolve. She will not have Guy back. It’s over. Amanda
wants Sidney. Ah, but does the reverse hold true?

Most of Season Three explores Sidney’s
indecisiveness. He and Amanda ought to have married right after the war. Now? If
the mystery trappings of Episode 1
seem convoluted to downright diffused, they are cohesive compared to the
meandering plot structure of Episode 2.
It begins with unintended poisoning during a cricket match and ends with
Sidney’s revelation Guy is not the evil puppet master holding Amanda hostage;
just a clumsy bloke who misfired in his vows and is now going to be made to pay
for his mistakes – perhaps, even unfairly so. Archdeacon Atubo drops veiled
comments (okay, threats) about upholding the sanctity of the church,
cryptically referencing his predecessor, but
perhaps equally hinting Sidney’s dalliances with a soon-to-be divorcee are
quite unacceptable. We get shades of Downton
Abbey at the local cricket match, Sidney and Geordie encountering racism
against Pakistani batsman, Zafar Ali (Dinesh Sundran). After a disputed
decision, the game is forfeited by the team captain and local doctor, Geoff
Towler(Peter Davison). But after only a few moments of
post-game refreshments the entire team begins to suffer from the after effects
of arsenic-laced beer. We get a shameless sequence where Amanda nurses Sidney
back to health; he, of course, naked from the waist up to advertise his
six-pack abs, much to Mrs. Maguire’s chagrin.

The following
morning, Zafar’s body is discovered by his brother,Munir (Parth
Thakerar). Despite his Muslim religious beliefs, Zafar is encouraged by Geordie
and Sidney to have an autopsy performed. The discovery of arsenic poisoning
places both Geoff and his demure daughter, Annie(Ciara Charteris) at the top of
the ‘prime suspect’ list – especially since she and Zafar were secretly in
love. In fact, Zafar had been contemplating converting to satisfy her parents. Meanwhile,
Geordie escalates his affair with Margaret under DC Phil Young’s watchful eye.
It takes a little more time for Sidney to figure out his best friend is being
disloyal, but when he does he flies into full sanctimonious piety mode, causing
Geordie to call him out on his own indiscretions with Amanda. Cathy suspects
something but will not ask her husband the obvious question. Instead, she
confides in Sidney, whom she implicitly trusts, asking if he knew something he
would tell her…right? Wrong. Sidney lies to Cathy. He is also critical of
Leonard’s attempt at ‘going straight’; chiding him from his proposal of
marriage to Hilary. The engagement is complicated when Leonard’s former love
interest, photographer, Daniel Marlowe (Oliver Dimsdale) is hired to take the prenuptial
pictures.

Meanwhile,
Geoff (Davison) gives Amanda an earful; branding her as a wanton, thus placing Grace’s
reputation in a precarious position should she pursue Sidney to husband and to
bed. Amanda seeks a divorce. Both church and state are not on the couple’s
side. The law requires grounds for a divorce (say, adultery), while the church
will never allow vicars to wed divorcees. It’s no good. Sidney must choose
between Amanda and the church. Returning briefly to the mystery at hand, Munir puts
his own spanner in the works when he reveals Zafar was already betrothed in an
arranged marriage back in Pakistan. Munir believes Annie has poisoned Zafar out
of revenge. However, it is quickly revealed Annie’s mother Rosie (Emma Davies)
did the poisoning to prevent her daughter from making a ‘terrible mistake’ with
a man neither of her class or race. Leonard, the most introspective and least
judgmental, begins to contemplate breaking off his engagement to Hilary.
Meanwhile, Geordie visits Margaret at her flat for passionate after hours
rendezvous. He knows it’s wrong but cannot help himself. She senses he can
never be hers completely, but nevertheless enjoys their times together.

As with Episode 1, the crime of passion here
is incidental to the storytelling. Too bad. Grantchester is supposed to be a mystery franchise, not England’s
version of Peyton Place. While Seasons One and Two kept all these variables in play, revolving the private goings
on around the elemental investigations, Season
Three begins to pattern its narratives on a sort of fractured perils of the
flesh morality clause with a little murder thrown in for good measure. But the
crimes are the least involving part of Season
Three; a genuine shame. In Episode 3, Leonard is hailed a hero
after he and Hilary survive a harrowing robbery at gunpoint in the post office.
Perusing the police mugshots, Leonard and Hilary identify the culprit (who was
wearing a gas mask at the time) as Walter Dunn (Joe Ferrara); a convicted
felon/robber and extortionist, presently running a garage repair service. Alas,
when Geordie, Sidney and Phil arrive to apprehend Dunn they discover he is already
dead of an apparent suicide. Actually, the whole crime scene has been doctored
beforehand. But by whom? Unimaginatively, we learn Dunn’s secretary Martha
Headingly (Flora Nicholson) and the postmaster’s daughter; Wendy Parker (Eve
Ponsonby) joined forces to rid themselves of their controlling male influences;
Dunn’s persistent pawing, and Martha, her stringent life working for her
conservative father. The two had planned to use their ill-gotten gains for an
escape to Paris.

In Episode 4, factory worker, Josephine
Sutton (Alix Ross) is found fatally injured and lying on the pavement below the
two-story window of the company that employs her. Sidney’s Sunday sermon
preaches that ‘temptation is the source
of all suffering,’ and yet he finds no resistance to it as his relationship
with Amanda heats up. The particulars of Geordie’s affair with Margaret are
revealed to Cathy by Phil at the policeman’s ball, leaving her dejected and
humiliated. Cross-examining Sidney on the matter, Amanda learns he has known
about it for some time. She is disgusted by his placing friendship ahead of his
duty as the moral purveyor. Meanwhile, Mrs. Maguire’s husband, Ronnie (Charlie
Higson), presumed dead and MIA at the end of the war, resurfaces with a con;
informing everyone he has cancer.
Uncharacteristically, Mrs. Maguire decides to give Ronnie a fair shake,
though hardly another chance to burrow into her heart. How does he repay her?
By absconding with her locket and life savings.
Having broken off his engagement to Hilary, and unable to reconcile his
feelings for Daniel, Leonard writes a suicide note for Sidney, then proceeds to
go upstairs to slit his wrists with a razor blade. He is only partially
successful. Binding his wounds, Sidney offers unbridled comfort to his most
devoted friend. Leonard’s near death forces
Sidney to reexamine his faith in the church; an institution that considers his
love for Amanda illicit and Leonard’s for Daniel an abomination. Is God love or
just very cruel? Or is it only the church seeking to dictate affairs of the
heart?

Amidst all
this inner turmoil there remains a nagging question that has absolutely nothing
to do with anything: who killed Josephine Sutton? When Geordie and Sidney
arrive to inspect the body, Sutton actually stirs. She is still alive. Alas,
slipping in and out of coma, and with no hope to fully recover from her ordeal,
the girl dies without ever divulging the particulars of her last moments on
earth. The factory’s boss, Ezra
Garston’s (Christopher Fulford) proposes Sutton leapt to her doom because of an
illicit affair with a boy not from these parts. But Sidney and Geordie soon
realize the owner’s son, Gideon (Joe Jameson) actually ran Sutton down on the
side of the road, quite by accident. Unable to justify leaving the scene of the
crime, he instead had Ezra help him lay out the body in a place it would be
discovered. As Ezra belongs to the
Masonic Lodge, the Masons prevent Geordie from making an arrest. Superintendent
John Baldwin (Adrian Lukis) is a Mason. So is Phil. Too bad for the Masons,
Phil has grown a conscience as well as a ‘new pair’; slipping Geordie enough
evidence to force Ezra’s hand. He will continue to pay restitution to Sutton’s
family; money for the education and rearing of her orphaned son. Disillusioned
by it all, frustration compounded by Amanda’s demands to know exactly where she
stands, Sidney confronts the Archdeacon with his primal doubts about remaining
a clergyman. The Deacon urges Sidney to ask for God’s help. “I did,” Sidney replies, “He didn’t answer me.” And thus, in Episode 5, Sidney’s travels lead him to
briefly walk away from the church in search of Ronnie and Mrs. Maguire’s stolen
booty.

Very soon,
Sidney finds the polygamist Ronnie hold up in a remote gypsy camp with another
wife, Cora (Lorraine Ashbourne) and two young daughters. Cora is the one dying
of cancer and Ronnie, despite his treachery, has stolen not for himself but to
manage the necessary treatments that may save her life. The gypsy community is
none too hospitable toward the interloper in their midst, even less so when
Ronnie is discovered murdered and the money Sidney earlier demanded be returned
to him suddenly gone missing. Cora’s son Pal (Adrian Bower) refuses to involve
the police. As fate would have it, Geordie has tailed Sidney to the camp.
Sidney refuses to come home with Geordie, so he goes it alone and informs Mrs.
Maguire of her late husband’s passing. Incensed, Mrs. Maguire makes her own
pilgrimage to the gypsy camp. At first, she and Cora are downright adversarial
towards one another. Gradually, a détente stirs. Cora gives back Mrs. Maguire’s
money. Recognizing its importance, Mrs. Maguire lays claim to only half; the
rest for Cora for whatever cancer treatments she may require.

Again, the
murder is given short-shrift; solved in one of those perfunctory deductions made
by Sidney. As it turns out, a fiery young buck, Abraham (Ewan Mitchell)
intended to marry Cora’s granddaughter, Luella (Alexa Davies) and inherit
leadership of the camp from her father Pal. He accidentally offed Ronnie in one
of his hot-headed fits of rage. Why? Because Luella was already two-timing him with
the local landowner’s son, Marcus (Simon Lennon) and Ronnie was helping her to
conceal the affair. Mrs. Maguire gives Sidney a bit of homespun advice; telling
him it is high time he grew up. Geordie also has a change of heart. After Cathy
has evicted him from the family home he breaks off with Margaret. Finally,
Amanda puts a period to Sidney’s indecisiveness with an ultimatum. “It’s either me or the church!” she reiterates
before slamming the door in his face.

Grantchester’s season finale concludes on as somber a note of uncertainty.
After authoring his letter of resignation, Sidney returns without his collar to
begin a new life with Amanda in London. Leonard is gravely concerned about the
new vicar’s ‘tolerance’ towards him and Mrs. Maguire is unexpectedly leveled by
the news of Sidney’s departure, despite having served as matron to four vicars
before him. Geordie’s is the sole note of encouragement here. Meanwhile, a
local boy, Jacob Reilly (Darius Greenlaw) vanishes without a trace. The boy’s
father, Richard (Neil Jackson) is quick to accuse Daniel of a possible
abduction but Leonard stands up for his friend. Eventually, suspicion falls
upon Jacob’s teacher, Mark Davies (Sam Hoare), who misguidedly intervened
because he thinks the boy comes from an abusive home. Taking Davies into
custody, Geordie exacts his own particular brand of justice, pummeling Davies
near senseless to gain his confession.

This outburst
causes Sidney to reexamine his future. It isn’t with Amanda. He values his
place as a beacon within the community – a vicar, first, foremost and always.
When Amanda discovers Sidney has yet to give his resignation letter to the
Archdeacon she knows their dream of a life together has no future. Aside: in
James Runcie’s original short stories, Sidney actually marries Hildegard
Staunton. Hmmm. We’ll see. As rumors continue to circulate James Norton has yet
to commit to a Season Four – his
permanent break with Amanda may be the best fans can hope; this, and of course,
Mrs. Maguire finally free to tie the knot with Jack Chapman (Nick Brimble), in
a ceremony presided over by Leonard. Geordie and Cathy reconcile at the
reception while Leonard affirms his love for Daniel with a passionate kiss;
leaving Sidney to sob over the pain he has both caused and its repercussions he
must now endure. Will he endure no more or move on, pray, to Season Four?

If there is a Season Four in the cards for Sidney,
Geordie and the rest of the cast, then I sincerely hope it involves a return to
the sleuthing that made Series One
and Two so engrossing ‘must see’
entertainment. The shift from mystery to melodrama has not served this
franchise well as there is never enough time to fit all of the pieces from these
varying back stories together, much less piecing the clues into a cohesive
whodunit that satisfies these polar opposites in storytelling. Kieran McGuigan’s
cinematography is a mixed blessing; moodily augmenting the murder mystery
elements but a little too dark and depressing for the melodrama. I have to
reiterate, Grantchester Season 3 was
not exactly my cup of well-steeped Earl Grey. The bromantic chemistry between
Geordie and Sidney from earlier seasons is taken as a given here and its weak to
downright uninspiring. As secondary characters have risen through the ranks,
their histories have vied for screen time that might best have been spent
concentrating on the mysteries that, at least in Season 3, have been economically conceived and even more simplistically
resolved. There is no subterfuge or intrigue to the ‘mystery’ portion of these
episodes; the balance concentrated on relationships and their occasionally
dishonestly evolved outcomes. Hence, Grantchester
has gone from a contemporary Sherlock Holmesian crime solvers’ series to a soap
opera with crimes by happenstance, almost as incongruously and much too neatly
resolved.

Grantchester Season 3 looks
predictably solid on Blu-ray; a crisp and delicately refined image sporting
good solid contrast, a light smattering of grain and no untoward DNR tinkering.
The image is, predictably, free of artifacts – age-related or digitally
conceived – and color fidelity is extraordinary. Greens and reds pop with
unanticipated brilliance and flesh tones sport exquisite subtle tonality. I loved
the way these episodes look and sound in 2.0 DTS. There’s really nothing more
to say. ITV has done a bang-up job here. We get a very brief ‘making of’
featurette, another ‘behind the scenes’ look at the franchise, plus a
featurette dedicated to the making of the ‘Christmas episode’. Bottom line: Grantchester on Blu-ray is a winner. I
just sincerely wish these episodes lived up to such high standards. Regrets!

About Me

Nick Zegarac is a freelance writer/editor and graphics artist. He holds a Masters in Communications and an Honors B.A in Creative Lit from the University of Windsor.
He is currently a freelance writer and has been a contributing editor for Black Moss Press and is a featured contributor to online's The Subtle Tea. He's also has had two screenplays under consideration in Hollywood.
Last year he finished his first novel and is currently searching for an agent to represent him.
Contact Nick via email at movieman@sympatico.ca